Tuesday, August 5, 2008

Marble Cookies

These are marble cookies, and they are pretty tasty, but that's not why I'm posting them.

Today during dinner there was a knock at the door. I opened it to find my 9-year-old neighbor (the one who loves cookies, mentioned here.)

"Um hi. I just really feel like baking something. Do you want to bake something?" he inquired.

"I ALWAYS want to bake something! Can I come get you when we are done with dinner?" I asked.

He nodded with a grin, and 15 minutes later we were flipping through the Mrs. Fields Cookie Book. (I've noticed that he is partial to cookbooks with pictures. I offered him "Baking from my Home to Yours," but with only 6 or so cookies with photos, he was uninterested.)

When he came across marble cookies, he was sold. I got out the ingredients and measuring spoons and cups, and he did all the work (except cracking the egg -- "Trust me, you don't want me to try...it always explodes all over the place," he warned.)

He manned the KitchenAid, measured the vanilla ("I should probably do this over the sink"), and even marbled the melted chocolate in expertly. When it came time to scoop the cookies onto the cookie sheets, he graciously offered to clean the spoons. "Actually I just want to lick the dough off them." You can't blame the kid for being honest!

I was utterly impressed with the results, and he was extremely pleased with himself as well. For any kids in your life that are interested in baking, I can say, this recipe is a great way for them to get their feet wet!

Marbles

(adapted from Mrs. Fields Best Cookie Book Ever)

2 cups all purpose flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup light brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 stick softened butter

1 large egg

1/2 cup sour cream

1 tsp vanilla extract

6 oz semisweet chocolate, melted and cooled

Preheat oven to 350 F

In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt and mix well with a fork.

Combine the butter and sugars in the bowl of a mixer with the paddle attachment. Cream on medium for a few minutes, until light and fluffy. Scrape down the bowl

Add egg, sour cream, and vanilla, and beat for an additional minute. Scrape down the bowl.

Add the flour mixture and mix on low just until combined. Don't overmix!

Pour the chocolate over the cookie bater. Using a rubber spatula, lightly fold it into the dough but do not mix it in completely

Drop by rounded tablespoons onto Silpat-lined cookie sheets.

Bake for about 12 minutes, then remove and cool on the cookie sheet for 2-3 minutes.

10 comments:

How sweet of you to feed his baking jones :) My 13 yr old cousin is always interested in baking and we started a blog of her chocolate experiments. She's on a hiatus since she's on summer vacay but I plan on sharing this recipe with her to try. Thanks so much for sharing!

I just packed my cookbooks for the big move, but wanted to make my favorite cookies - Mrs Fields' Marbles. Thanks so much for posting this recipe. One question: why have you changed the oven temperature from the original recipe? Did you find that it makes a better cookie? Would love to know...